Ryan Day Appears To Run From Competition As Ohio State's Strength Of Schedule Is Ranked 127th In The Country
Gotcha! That's how you use a headline and a thumbnail (to perfection) to draw the reader into my manifesto. I do not give a FUCK about Strength of Schedule after 3 weeks, and neither should you. The fact of the matter is that when you're an Ohio State Buckeye, the goal is to Beat Michigan and Win the National Championship. Nothing else matters. And since Michigan is always on the schedule (unless they eat another bat and cry covid like they did in 2020), all we have to worry about schedule-wise is manufacturing one that will lead us to the playoff. And this is one:
First of all, get off your high horse if you think this isn't a tough enough schedule. Oregon, Penn State, and Michigan* were all in the Top 10 at the beginning of the season. Iowa was ranked as well. Is it our fault that Michigan* is going to be 6-5 when we play them? No, it's Jim Harbaugh's fault. But other than that, Nebraska and Indiana both have a chance to be undefeated when we see them, too. Obviously they have to play each other so they both won't be, but the winner certainly could be. The schedule pictured above is just fine and anyone who says otherwise is simply a hater.
As for the non-conference part…..not the strongest! I'll admit it. But you also have to admit that the reasons to schedule a big non-conference game early in the season are dwindling as we speak. Can you make the argument that they matter less because more teams make the playoff? Sure. But I can also argue that a 10-2 Ohio State team will make a 12-team playoff 100.0% of the time. And if you can go undefeated in the non-conference, you are quite literally allowed to lose TWICE in the Big 10 and still get a seat at the table. If the goal is to make the playoff, Ohio State has the perfect schedule.
….and if you don't like the cupcake slate this year, we have quite the gauntlet coming up in the next fews years for you guys to get your rocks off.
Arch Manning coming to Columbus. Tickets might be $1500 minimum. But to the schedule haters, is Texas, Alabama, and Georgia good enough for you guys?